100 Books in a Year (64/100)56. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury57. Shoggoth's Old Peculiar by Neil Gaiman58. Making Waves by Nell Dixon59. Life on the Edge by Jennifer Comeaux60. Running into the Darkness by D. A. Bale61. Scottish Wonder Tales from Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie62. Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Graberstein63. Planes, Train, and Auto-Rickshaws by Laura Pedersen64. Native American Classics by Graphic ClassicsBook Blogger Recommendations (2/10)2. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

As you know from my Stacking the Shelves posts, I review for two other websites (bookloons.com and bittenbybooks.com). As I cannot post my reviews there and here, but I would still like to count the books I read for the challenges, I am going to have a post like this at the end of the every month listing the books I reviewed and what challenges the went towards.Title: Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's LibraryAuthor: Chris Graberstein

Thoughts: I did enjoy some of the stories in this book, but the format of the stories was just odd. Some stories flowed right from one to another; and some did not really flow well and were mashed together with no transition. The story I liked the best was also the longest, "The Land of the Green Mountian", which has the feel of a true fairy tale.

Running Into the Darkness is an intense thriller. D. A. Bale really packs in a lot of action and intrigue.

After a major run-in with her boss during her second year of residency, Samantha Bartlett welcomes to the chance to get away. Unfortunately, her reason for going away is the death of her grandmother who raised her since her parents' flight was blown up as she, a five-year-old at the time, watched. However, she no longer feels safe in her childhood home as a mysterious man with sunglasses seems to be following her. When they finally meet, her turns her world completely upside down, and Samantha is not sure at all about the new direction.

Bale has created a very kick-ass heroine in Samantha, but unfortunately, I never connected with her, making it very difficult to get lost in Running Into the Darkness. Detective Joe Roberts, Samantha's childhood friend, was a much more relate-able character, and the scenes with him seemed to pack more punch.

As D. A. Bale's debut, Running Into the Darkness is not a bad attempt at suspense and a strong female lead. I just need the character connection within all the action to ramp it up a notch.

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Thoughts: This was a complex story with plenty of romance and skating action. It did feel like it could have been split in two halfway through with the run up to the Olympics (which was very climatic) and the budding romance between skater and coach, and then the part with the controversy and Olympics. However, it was a good example of New Adult and a cute, sweet romance.

Monday, June 3, 2013

Why Read?: For FunChallenges: Audio Book, British Books, Free Reads, 100 Books in a Year

Thoughts: With a this title, I had no clue what to expect, but I definitely got the unexpected. For a good two-thirds, the story seems like a humorous tale of a mislead American traveler on England's coast. But then Gaiman delivers a fun and interesting twist and caps it off with the perfect ending to make you wonder.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Why Read?: Book ClubChallenges: Book Blogger Recommendations, 100 Books in a Year

Thoughts: The start of this was good, but then it got a little slow after Clarisse disappeared. However, after Part 1, it really took off and the ending was not at all what I was expecting. Bradbury expresses some amazing view through some very poetic prose.

Disclaimer

All opinions expressed on this blog are those of the reviewer and not necessarily of Reading Challenged. No compensation has been provided for any review. Unless otherwise noted, all book cover images were taken from Goodreads.